Inked with love: Tattoos that honor Mom

By Rachel Rodriguez, CNN

Updated 1150 GMT (1950 HKT) May 10, 2013

Chat with us in Facebook Messenger. Find out what's happening in the world as it unfolds.

Photos:Inked with love

Inked with love – John Clarke got his "mum" tattoo -- his first and only -- on his shoulder at age 50. He revealed it to his mother at her 70th birthday party, despite knowing that she hated tattoos. "Now, many thousands of miles away from home, every time I see the tattoo in the mirror, I can smile about that evening and my mum's shocked expression," he said.

Hide Caption

1 of 18

Photos:Inked with love

Inked with love – GW Byers went for a less traditional but increasingly common design: a wrist tattoo in her mother's handwriting. Her mom passed away in 2008, and five years later, Byers had a tattoo artist copy the signature and heart her mom had written on her college graduation card. "She had gorgeous penmanship," said Byers.

Hide Caption

2 of 18

Photos:Inked with love

Inked with love – Samantha Pender also chose to tattoo her mother's writing. It's on her thigh, surrounded with Mickey Mouse hands forming a heart because her mom was a huge Disney fan. She "would get teary-eyed watching a commercial for Walt Disney World," said Pender. Her dad, brother, and sister-in-law all have similar Disney-themed tattoos in memory of her mom -- although Pender says her mom would probably "roll her eyes" if she knew. "She never understood the point" of tattoos, Pender said.

Hide Caption

3 of 18

Photos:Inked with love

Inked with love – Mary Johnston and her brother have matching tattoos in their mother's handwriting. The "Mom" signature and heart were taken from a birthday card. "We both had the tattoo placed on our left shoulder blade because Mom always had our backs," said Johnston. She later added the two daises, "one for mom and one for me. We each carried them in our bridal bouquets."

Hide Caption

4 of 18

Photos:Inked with love

Inked with love – Judy Jordan asked her mother to write out the words "strength," "courage" and "wisdom" so that she could have them tattooed on her arm in her mom's handwriting. The words come from the title of an India.Arie song. "Since my mom had to raise my brother and myself on her own, I felt that these words described her perfectly," said Jordan. "I can see it constantly and when I get bogged down thinking how hard being a single parent is, I see my tattoo and realize that I am my mother's daughter, so I'm bound to have some of her strength, courage, and wisdom."

Hide Caption

5 of 18

Photos:Inked with love

Inked with love – Kyle Divine honors both his moms with a tattoo he got on his arm on Mother's Day in 2006. "My moms were the best role models I had while I was growing up, regardless of sexual orientation," he said. "I got the tattoo to show them and the world that I am proud to have them as my parents." It also has a more subtle meaning: "Without actually saying it, the tattoo says that I am a supporter of gay rights." Divine says both his moms love the ink.

Hide Caption

6 of 18

Photos:Inked with love

Inked with love – Emily Kirouac wanted the perfect image for her mom tattoo. After much thought, "I chose a lighthouse" on her calf for two reasons: "One, because as long as I can remember, she has collected lighthouses. Two, because my mama is the biggest inspiration in my life," she said. "She is the light of my life." Kirouac says her mom isn't a big fan of tattoos, but when she saw it, "she had a tear in her eye and said it was beautiful. That meant everything to me."

Hide Caption

7 of 18

Photos:Inked with love

Inked with love – Emily's husband Robert Kirouac also has a mom tattoo on his arm. His mom said that if he was going to get a tattoo, he had to get a "mom" one. Additionally, it had to look like singer Adam Levine's mom tattoo, because "she watches him on 'The Voice' and she thinks he's hot," said Kirouac. This was the result -- compare it with Levine's in the next frame. "I proudly wear my mom tat because it is exactly what she wanted, and I love to keep my mom happy," said Kirouac.

Hide Caption

8 of 18

Photos:Inked with love

Inked with love – Levine's mom tattoo near his elbow.

Hide Caption

9 of 18

Photos:Inked with love

Inked with love – Rachael Sauceda's ink tribute to her mom is probably the most unconventional of the bunch. Her mother grew up on a pig farm, and Sauceda used to have a shirt with this design as a kid. It's now tattooed on her upper arm. She and both her brothers have matching pig tattoos in honor of their mom. "She cringes every time we show up with another tattoo," says Sauceda, who has 14, "but she has confessed that she does like this one."

Hide Caption

10 of 18

Photos:Inked with love

Inked with love – Brad Allison paid tribute to his parents by inking their portraits on his forearm. He chose a wedding photograph of his mother and his father's senior picture, and the tattoo artist combined them to create the final design. When Allison got his first tattoo -- he has seven -- his mom "had a fit." But when he got this one, his third, he says she cried. The tattoo is especially precious to Allison because his father died five years ago, and "it looks as if my mother is watching over him."

Hide Caption

11 of 18

Photos:Inked with love

Inked with love – Amanda Clifton and her mom have matching tattoos on their feet of a mother and daughter forming a heart. They had talked about the idea for a while, and finally decided to make it a reality during a mother/daughter vacation in Florida. "My mom is my BFF," said Clifton. "When you have so much love for a person, it's hard not to show some love with ink." She says she gets lots of compliments on the tattoo and that people frequently remark they "want to do the same thing with their own moms."

Hide Caption

12 of 18

Photos:Inked with love

Inked with love – Joanne Asbury wanted a tattoo to remember and celebrate her mom after she died in 2001. She decided on an image of a daisy, since that was her mom's favorite flower. "I put her tattoo on my ankle, so she is with me every step I take," said Asbury.

Hide Caption

13 of 18

Photos:Inked with love

Inked with love – Jill Shingledecker's mom is an equestrian, so she decided to honor that part of her life. "She has been showing and riding horses since she was a little girl, so I got a horse with her initials below," said Shingledecker. It's on her right arm "because she is my strength -- I'm right-handed." She also has a tattoo tribute to her dad on her left arm, "close to my heart [because] he was killed in Vietnam when I was a baby."

Hide Caption

14 of 18

Photos:Inked with love

Inked with love – Kathy Lake also chose an animal motif on her calf to honor her mother's memory. Her mom liked rabbits, and Lake made her rabbit purple to also represent her mom's favorite color. "She had diabetes and had a lot of complications from it, so when I got the tattoo, it may have hurt me for a few minutes, but I toughed it out because I thought about all the pain she dealt with throughout her life and she never complained," said Lake.

Hide Caption

15 of 18

Photos:Inked with love

Inked with love – Maranda Green's mother passed away from complications of polycystic kidney disease when she was just 14. At 19, Green was diagnosed with the same condition. The meaning of her sunflower tattoo is twofold: It's in memory of her mom, and it's a symbol of her own resolve in fighting the disease. Why a sunflower? "My mom always loved those big, seemingly flowing fields of sunflowers," said Green. The tattoo is, of course, on her lower back -- over the kidneys.

Hide Caption

16 of 18

Photos:Inked with love

Inked with love – Edith Sanchez describes her mother as her rock. "She always put me first." So, when it came to honoring mom, she decided to go for a less traditional tattoo. She contacted famed tattoo artist Kat Van D and requested a session. To her surprise, she received a response and was able to get a portrait tattoo of her mother. "I think it was fate, I hear all these stories about years on waiting list...in a month I got in," she said.

Hide Caption

17 of 18

Photos:Inked with love

Inked with love – After Lori Krstich's mother was diagnosed with leukemia seven years ago, Krstich wanted to show her mom she was always in her heart. "I love memorial tattoos, but thought that an even better idea was to show her how much I love her while she's here," she said. She got a tattoo with the words "mom" on her ankle. Her mom loves the design, and is still living strong now that her cancer is in remission.

Hide Caption

18 of 18

Story highlights

For more than 100 years, tattoos have been a popular way to honor mom

Designs range from the iconic banner and heart to custom portraits and handwriting

"It's hard not to show some love with ink," says one woman with a mom tat

Tattoos have had a variety of purposes over their 5,000-year history. In cultures from ancient Egyptian to Polynesian, they've served as medicine, rite of passage, good-luck charm, punishment, decoration, religious, political or status symbol, and, of course, tribute to a loved one.

And many times, that loved one is Mom.

"Just about anybody that's heavily tattooed, if they don't have it already, [a mom tattoo] is definitely on their list of things to get," said tattoo artist Alan Flores, who works out of 13 Roses Tattoo Parlour in Atlanta.

What's thought of as the "traditional" mom tattoo -- a heart with a banner, stereotypically seen on World War II-era sailors -- is still a popular design. "I've done plenty of mom tattoos with banners around hearts," said Flores. But custom motifs, handwriting and even portraits are gaining ground -- check out the gallery above.

"I did one the other day on a guy; his mom is a tennis player, so I drew up a head with a tennis racket," said Flores. And sometimes customers just come to him with general ideas -- "favorite flowers, things she likes" -- and then "it's up to me to create that image that they're picturing."

In Flores' experience, people usually get mom or dad tattoos as memorials for a parent after they've passed away. Of course, they can also honor a special occasion or serve as a tribute. Kyle Divine, in the gallery above, got his tattoo on Mother's Day in 2006, and John Clarke got his for his mother's 70th birthday. Amanda Clifton and her mom got matching tattoos during a mother/daughter vacation.

"When you have so much love for a person, it's hard not to show some love with ink," Clifton remarked.

Pondering a tattoo of your own to honor mom? If you're thinking of a custom or unique piece, like a portrait, Flores recommends bringing in your tattoo artist from the start to refine your vision.

"I know what works as a tattoo and I know what doesn't work," he said. "A lot of art can't be translated to skin."

Once you've got your mom ink, be sure to share the love and show off your design on CNN iReport. Happy Mother's Day!